above Sun, the Gentle, wind · below Gen, Keeping Still, mountain
This sign describes slow development, of a relationship, say, or a piece of work or a reputation. A tree grows on the mountain, slowly, and can be seen from far away. It is like a marriage in old China, where all the formalities must be settled first. In his view ‘no sudden influence or awakening lasts’; only constancy ensures that slow progress does not, in the end, peter out. Go step by step in the right order and keep working steadily on yourself; that way it turns out well. Rushing and short cuts won’t hold up here.
Which step comes next in your situation, and which one would you like to skip?
The sign consists of Sun (wood, penetration) above, that is, without, and Gen (mountain, stillness) below, that is, within. A tree on a mountain develops slowly and in due order, and as a result it stands firmly rooted. This gives the idea of a development that goes forward gradually, step by step. The attributes of the figures point the same way: inwardly there is calm, which guards against rash acts, and outwardly there is penetration, which makes development and progress possible.
Some old words keep coming back in Wilhelm’s sayings:
Development. The maiden is given in marriage. Good fortune!Perseverance is favourable.
Hesitant is the development that leads the maiden to follow the man to his home. The various formalities must be settled before the marriage comes about. This gradual development can be carried over to other relationships as well, wherever correct working relationships are concerned, for example in the appointment of an official. There one must wait for a correct development. Precipitate action would not be good. It is the same, finally, where one wishes to exert influence on others. There too it is a matter of a correct path of development through the cultivation of one’s own personality. No influence by agitation works for long.
Within, too, development must take the same path if lasting results are to be achieved.
The gentle quality, adaptable and yet penetrating, is the outer aspect, which must spring from inner calm.
It is precisely the gradual nature of development that makes constancy necessary. For only constancy ensures that slow progress does not, in the end, peter out.
On the mountain is a tree: the image of development.So the noble one dwells in dignified virtueto better the customs.
The tree on the mountain can be seen from afar, and its development shapes the look of the whole surrounding landscape. It does not shoot up like the plants of the marsh; its growth proceeds gradually. The effect on people, too, can only be gradual. No sudden influence or awakening lasts. Progress must be entirely gradual. And to achieve this progress in public opinion and public custom, the personality must gain influence and weight. This comes about through careful and lasting work on one’s own moral development.
Wilhelm placed the signs ○ and □ after certain lines (p. 334 f.). They mark the rulers of the hexagram. □ stands by the constituting ruler: the line that gives the hexagram its meaning, however high it stands and whatever its character. ○ stands by the governing ruler. It is always of good character and becomes ruler through the meaning of the time and its position, usually in the fifth place. Where a line is both, it carries ○.
The wild goose moves gradually towards the shore.The young son is in danger.There is talk. No blame.
This is a lonely beginning: someone wants to find their feet in life and has no one to welcome them. The first steps are slow, and there is criticism and danger. Don’t let the gossip hurry you along; the very difficulties keep you from being over-hasty, and going slowly like this is not a mistake.
The individual lines all take as their image the gradual flight of the wild goose. The wild goose is the symbol of conjugal fidelity. It is said of it that after the death of its mate it does not join with another.
The first line shows the first stage in the flight of the water birds from the water to the heights. The shore is reached. The situation is that of a lonely young person who wants to begin making his way in life. Because there is no one to come to meet him, his first steps are slow and hesitant, and he is surrounded by danger. Naturally he meets with a good deal of criticism. But it is precisely the difficulties that keep him from being over-hasty and so make his progress a success.
The wild goose moves gradually towards the rock.Eating and drinking in peace and concord. Good fortune!
After uncertain beginnings a first safe place has been reached, perhaps a secure position that gives you a decent living. That brings cheerfulness and calm for the way ahead. Share your good luck with others, as the wild goose calls its companions when it finds food; this turns out well.
The rock is a safe place on the shore. Development has gone a step further. One has got beyond the initial uncertainty and found a secure position in life that provides an adequate livelihood. This first success, which opens the way to the possibility of being effective, lends one’s mood a certain cheerfulness, and one goes calmly towards the future.
It is said of the wild goose that it calls its companions when it finds food; this is the image of peace and concord in prosperity. One does not want one’s good luck for oneself alone, but is ready to share it with others.
The wild goose moves gradually towards the plateau.The man goes forth and does not return.The woman carries a child but does not bring it into the world. Misfortune!It is favourable to fight off robbers.
The wild goose has strayed onto the dry plateau. In the same way, whoever rushes headlong into a fight instead of letting things develop has gone too far, and that turns out badly, for their own people too. Don’t go looking for a quarrel. Hold your place with vigour and fend off only unjustified attacks; then it all turns out well.
The dry plateau is not for the wild goose. If it goes there, it has lost its way and gone too far. This runs counter to the law of development.
So it is in human life as well. If one does not let things develop quietly but, of one’s own accord, rushes headlong into the fight, this brings misfortune. One puts one’s own life at stake, and the family is ruined by it. But this is by no means inevitable; it is only the consequence of transgressing the law of natural development. If one does not go looking for the fight but confines oneself to holding one’s place with vigour and fending off unjustified attacks, all goes well.
The wild goose moves gradually towards the tree.Perhaps it finds a flat branch. No blame.
A tree is no place for a wild goose, and in life too you sometimes land in a situation that doesn’t suit you. Be prudent and yielding. Then, even amid the uncertainty, you find a safe place where life can go on, as the goose finds its flat branch; that is not a mistake.
A tree is not a suitable place for a wild goose. But if it is clever, it finds a flat branch on which it can stand. In life too, in the course of development, one often comes into situations that do not suit one and in which it is hard to hold one’s ground without danger. Then it is important to be prudent and yielding. Then, even in the midst of danger, one can find a safe place where life can go on.
The wild goose moves gradually towards the summit.For three years the woman has no child.In the end nothing can stop her. Good fortune!
In a high position you easily become isolated and misjudged by the very person you depend on, because deceitful people have pushed their way in between. For a while the bond stays barren. Hold on, and it turns out well: development clears up such misunderstandings, and the union comes about after all.
The summit is a high place. In a high position one easily becomes isolated. One is misjudged by the person on whom one depends: the wife by her husband, the official by his master. The cause of this is false people who have pushed their way in between. The result is that the relationships remain barren and nothing is accomplished. But in the course of development such misunderstandings are cleared up, and the union comes about after all.
The wild goose moves gradually towards the heights of the clouds.Its feathers can be used for the sacred dance. Good fortune!
A work is complete and stands as high as the flight of wild geese, which keep strict order as they go. A life like this becomes an example to others. Even at the goal, keep to the order of your path; what you leave behind can still give others light. This turns out well.
Here life is complete. The work stands complete. Its course rises high into the sky, like the flight of the wild geese once they have left all earthly ground behind. There they fly on and keep the order of their flight, forming figures of strict lines.
And when their feathers fall, they can be used as ornaments in the sacred mime dances of the temple.
So the life of a perfected man is a bright light for the people of the earth, who look up to him as their example.
Would you like to put your own question to the I Ching? Six throws of three coins, and the answer appears straight away.
Consult the I ChingTexts by Richard Wilhelm: I Ging. Das Buch der Wandlungen (first edition Jena 1924), translated into English by NUMEN COMPASS from the Diederichs edition, Munich 1996. Wilhelm’s German text is in the public domain. The section ‘What the hexagram says today’, the question for you and the short notes under the lines are our own reading. The I Ching is no substitute for medical, legal or psychological advice.